CD19 chimeric antigen receptor-T cells in B-cell leukemia and lymphoma: current status and perspectives

The approval of tisagenlecleucel and axicabtagene ciloleucel represents a breakthrough in the field of immune and cellular therapy for hematologic malignancies. These anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor-T cells (CAR) proved to be highly effective in the treatment of relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) and specific histologic subtypes of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphomas. This expert review aims to summarize the current available research evidence in this field, with a special focus on the different challenges faced by treating physicians, and we also provide future perspectives.